Safety device for traction operation



P. FERRARI SAFETY DEVICE FOR TRACTION OPERATION Filed S ap 2 1926 "Elven/01' flu-no f r ol l atentecl Get. 9, 1928 rL-rmo' FERRARI, or MILAN, ITALY, .AssIGNoR T0 mrmmnensmnscnnr BOVERI & GIE, 0F BADEH,1SW1TZJERLAND,;A JOINT-STOCK COMPANY OF SWITZER.

LAND;

SAFETY DEVICE iron TRACTION ornnn'rron.

Application filedfieptember 24 1926', Serial No. 137,583, and in Italy Septem r 25, 19 25.

operation on systems wherein diilerent sections of the line are, operated at different voltages. The present invention has to doparticularly with control mechanism on'the motor car whereby proper. changes in the switch connectionsi'o'i the motors will beeffected automatically upon the passage of the vehicle from asection of low voltage to a section-ofhigh voltage.

A .particular'object oftheinvent ion is the provision of improvedapparatus for operation and control 01": thecch ange-over switch.

A further object is theprovision ofmecha nism whichwill be certain in operation and through which control of aplurality ofmotor cars in the same train may be accomplished automatically. I

Other and-turther objects-will be pointed out or indicated hereinafter or will be apparent to one skilled in the art-upon an understanding of the invention or upon its em ployment inpractice. V

For the purpose ofthis application, Iillustrate twoarrangements whereby the invention may be embodied andprac'ticed, but it is to be understood that these arepresen'ted for illustration only, andarenot to beaccorded p any effect for the limitation of the claims short of the true and most comprehensive scope of'the invention in -the. art.

In the drawing, j Fig. l isca diagram ofswitch operating and control apparatus forinstallation'onan electric railway vehicle; and

Fig. 2 is a diagram of .a modified form of" such apparatus. p p v The present invention 1s inthenatureo'f lmprovement on the form or apparatus'illustratecl and described in the copen'ding ap-' p ication of Abraham Gouwenhoven, Serial No. 92,325, filed March 1926. The appli'-' cation referred to describes a safety device for protecting traction moto-rs'on linesjoperating with more than one voltage, according to which a lever onthe carstrikes a ramp mounted on the;track when passing from one.

automatically afterthe necessary changes in the connections for high voltage working havebeen made. i The drawing gives twogeXamples of the invention'as applied to/electric vehicles with pneumaticallyoperated main switches. In Flg. 1 the voltagechange-overswitch must be operated by hand; 'in the arrangement 7 shown in 2 this'isefiected pneumatically. The same reference letters are nsejd as'in the former application. Thus a is the control shaft for theair cock 7 andthe change-over switch 0, the latter-having two positions, d for low-voltageand e for high voltage; I) is the operating shaft :for the air cock g which controls the ai'r cylinder 79 actuatingythe main switch g; u is the rampi'orthe striking lever '11, 7c the handleotthe, change-over switch; 1%-

ands th piy sagesinthea-ir cocky; m the compressed air inlet; tthe outlet, and'oiand the'pipes connectingthe cocks fend g: A 'c-" cording to the present invention the cock 9 is not operated by hand but thro-ugh the;

agency ot'a spring loaded: air cylinder x, and can be retained in the highWol-tage position by means ofa pneumatic cat-ch mecha-nism'y having a detent 1/ adaptedto en'gageakeeper on shaft 7) WhenJthe shaft iis 'in 'high voltage osition.

" The action lis' as ,follows. If the car enters a high voltage section with'th'e swi-tch- 0 still in position d for low' volt-age working,

the lever '0 strikes against the-rail u-and tak'es up'the position shown by the, d0t-ted lines, the detent engaging the' keeper onshaft b-tolatch it in the new position. thus rotated through 90' a'nd;the in'aincylinder p, which was connected to the compressed air supply at mithrough the pipe 0 and passage 70, 1S put into communication-with the atmosphere at t by way ofjthep'ipe rand the passage 8. The main switch g is'th-us openedf If. the driver nowturnsthe switchc fro mp0 sition into position 6 by meansof'the-handle lathe cylinders 12, 00 and y are simultaneously connected'to the compressed air supply atm via the passage n andthepiper; The cylinder 3; closes the main switchg; the cylinder 'a prevents the aircock gl' frombein-gturned y holding the shaftb.

If the car enters'a low voltage section of line the driver is at once advised of this fact by the sudden drop in the speed and, thereback, and the cylinder 'g --retracts the detent 'lhe air cock 9 18 fore, turns the handle is into the position for low voltage operation; This action opens the three cylinders 10, a? and y to atmosphere at t, as shown in the drawing. The spring in cylinderw rotates theshaft 6 through 90 back to its initial position, thus raising the striking lever o and returning the air cock 9 to the position shown. This again admits compressed air to the cylinder 10 and the switch 9 is closed.

In the arrangement shown in Fig. 2, the shaft a, instead of being hand operated, is geared to the pneumatic motor a which is controlled in the same way as the cylinders I p, w and 3 either from one of the two air cocks f on the drivers platform or, when circumstances require, from the air cock 9 when actuated by the striking lever. same reference letters are used as in Fig. 1. In this arrangement, air pipe 1" is extended to supply the left hand cylinder of the motor 2 and pipe 0 is extended to supply the right hand cylinder. Pipes 1 and 0 are controlled by two valves 7, from either of which the operation of the apparatus may be eifectech being held closed by pressure in cylinder 10 transmitted through valve g. IVhen the lever 2) is swung to the high-voltage position, wherein it is latched by detent y, both cylinder 9 and the right hand cylinder of motor .2 are vented through passage 8 of the left hand valve f, permitting main switch ;0 to be opened by its spring. Then, to position change-over switch 0 for the high-voltage connection, valve 7 is moved to place pressure line min communication with pipe 1', passage 8 being thereby placed in communication with pipe 0 and vent 25. Pressure is thus supplied to the left hand cylinder of motor a and change-over switch 0 moved to position 6. Cylinder w is likewise supplied with pressure, to hold valve 9 in position to establish communication between pipe 1" and cylinder 12, thus closing the main switch, and pressure in cylinder y unlatches shaft Z). If the operator, therefore, wishes to change from low to high voltage position, he turns valve f by its handle to place passage n in communication with pipe 1" and passage 5 in position to vent pipe 0 to atmosphere through I. This supplies pressure to the left hand cylinder of motor 2, and also vents cylinder 71 permitting switch 9 to be opened by its spring; It alsovsupplies pressure to cylinder :0 to rotate shaft 1; and place pipe 1" in com- The f is restored to the position shown. The apparatus may be operated and controlled in like fashion from the right hand valve hat I claim is: V

1. A protective device for traction motors operating on a system having high and low voltage sections, comprising, in combination, a main switch on the vehicle, a throw-over switch on the vehicle, a control device. for the main switch, a throwing device at the junction of high and low voltage sections'for cooperation with the control device, and means for latching the control device in position for opening the main switch.

2. A protective device for traction motors operating on a system having high and low voltage sections, comprising, in combination, a main switch on the vehicle, a throw-over switch on the vehicle,a control device for the main switch, a throwing device at the junction of high and low voltage sections for cooperation with the control device to cause opening of the main switch, means .for latching the control device, and means controlled in conjunction with the throw-over switch for unlatching the control device.

3. In apparatus for controlling an electric vehicle disposed for operation along; coextensive high and low voltage supply lines, a supply switch carried by such vehicle, means carried by such vehicle and having a first and a second position and being operable whenin said first position to provide for low voltage operation of said vehicle and being operable when in said second position to provide for high voltage operation of the same, relatively fixed means disposed at the junction of such lines, means carried by suchv vehicle and d sposed for coaction with said relatively fixed means and for movement to a given position upon and by virtue of such said supply switch, means for holding said last-named means in said given posit-ion thereof, and means cooperable with the said first-named means when'tlie same is in said second position thereof for effecting release of said holding means and closing action of said supply switch.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto sub scribed my name at Milan, Italy, this 9th day of September, A. D. 1926'.

PLINIO FERRARI. 

